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Study of the Book of Kings – 1Ki 17:1-24  “The barrel of meal shall not waste…”

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1Ki 17:1-24  “The barrel of meal shall not waste neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth”

[Study Aired May 6, 2022]

1Ki 17:1  And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word. 
1Ki 17:2  And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, 
1Ki 17:3  Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. 
1Ki 17:4  And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. 
1Ki 17:5  So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD: for he went and dwelt by  “the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. 
1Ki 17:6  And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook. 
1Ki 17:7  And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land. 
1Ki 17:8  And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, 
1Ki 17:9  Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. 
1Ki 17:10  So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. 
1Ki 17:11  And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. 
1Ki 17:12  And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. 
1Ki 17:13  And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son. 
1Ki 17:14  For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth. 
1Ki 17:15  And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days. 
1Ki 17:16  And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah.
1Ki 17:17  And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him. 
1Ki 17:18  And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son? 
1Ki 17:19  And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed. 
1Ki 17:20  And he cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son? 
1Ki 17:21  And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child’s soul come into him again. 
1Ki 17:22  And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived. 
1Ki 17:23  And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son liveth. 
1Ki 17:24  And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth. 

This section of scripture gives us hope by showing us, through the prophet Elijah, who is a type of Christ, how God will “supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus” as we’re told in (Php 4:19). As we read through this study it should become very clear, via the names and places and people and events taking place, that God is showing the apple of His eye through these inspired events (Pro 7:2, Deu 32:9-10, Zec 2:8, Psa 17:8). He knows what we need before we even ask him as the author and finisher of our faith, desiring “above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth”  (Mat 6:8, Heb 12:2, 3Jn 1:2).

2Co 4:15  For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.

Php 4:19  But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Pro 7:2  Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye. [Rev 1:3] 

Deu 32:9  For the LORD’S portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. 
Deu 32:10  He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him about, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye. 

Zec 2:8  For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye. 

Psa 17:8  Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings,

Mat 6:8  Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.

Heb 12:2  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

3Jn 1:2  Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.

To be hidden “under the shadow of thy wings” of Psalm 17:8 is to be hidden in Christ (Col 3:3), and Elijah the Tishbite is also a type of the elect who go whithersoever the Lamb leads us, which means we follow each other as we follow Christ (Rev 14:4, Rom 8:14-16, 3Jn 1:3, 1Co 11:1) fulfilling our role in this life of being a light in this world with the word of His truth in our mouth as it was in Elijah’s, “that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth” (1Ki 17:24, Mat 5:14-16, Gal 6:10).

Col 3:3  For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.

Rev 14:4  These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth [Rom 8:14-16]. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. 

3Jn 1:3  For I rejoiced greatly, when the brethren came and testified of the truth that is in thee, even as thou walkest in the truth.

1Co 11:1  Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. 

Mat 5:14  Ye are the light of the worldG2889 = kosmos. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. [1Jn 3:17, Luk 10:30-37]
Mat 5:15  Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. pan>
Mat 5:16  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Gal 6:10  As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. 

1Ti 4:7  But refuse profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness. 
1Ti 4:8  For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. 
1Ti 4:9  This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation. 
1Ti 4:10  For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe. 
1Ti 4:11  These things command and teach. 

As we go about our Father’s business, as Christ our example does (Luk 2:49), we will learn of His provision along the way and His faithfulness to meet our every need in this life as we learn to live Godly lives (Tit 2:11-12) that are content whether we have a little or a lot (Php 4:11). The promise of God’s provision for His elect is typified with this statement in 1Kings 17:16: “the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah“, reminding us, especially in matters of faith, how God will provide what we need via the author and finisher of our faith Jesus Christ who provides the spiritual meal (as the bread of life [Joh 6:58]) and cruse of oil (Zec 4:6, Lev 6:13, Joh 6:63) that fails not as a symbol of God’s holy spirit that he pours out upon us to give increase in due season, as we labor in His word and work out our own salvation with fear and trembling knowing “it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure” (1Co 3:6-7).

1Ki 17:1  And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word. 

This prophetic announcement being made to Ahab via the prophet Elijah reveals the sovereignty of God over all of His creation. Not only does God alone give the increase as we read (1Co 3:6), but God alone is the one who withholds His word from us as symbolized with these words, “There shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.”  The reason God withholds His word from us is to bring us to our wits’ end so that we cry out in that darkened state of not seeing truth clearly (Psa 107:25-30), and then he delivers us just as Elijah did with the people in his day (Jas 5:17-20).

Psa 107:24  These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep.
Psa 107:25  For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. 
Psa 107:26  They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble. 
Psa 107:27  They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end. 
Psa 107:28  Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distressesH4480 H4691. [narrowness (Mat 7:14, 1Co 10:13)]
Psa 107:29  He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. 
Psa 107:30  Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven. 

Jas 5:17  Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. 

[This example of Elias is a type of God’s elect who witness to a world today that cannot receive the words of Christ, the whole stay of bread and water, and yet in the day of their visitation Christ’s witness through the elect will bring forth the desired results and the seed will not have been sown in vain (Rev 11:3, Isa 3:1, Isa 55:11, Ecc 11:1, 1Pe 2:12)]

Jas 5:18  And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit. 
Jas 5:19  Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; [Luk 22:32, 1Jn 4:17]
Jas 5:20  Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death [ultimately the second death (Rev 2:11)], and shall hide a multitude of sins.

[Today as the body of Christ, we cover each other’s sins by washing one another with the word (Eph 5:26), “and the earth brought forth her fruit” because of God giving that increase. That is what is happening now within the body of Christ, and if we are granted to endure until the end, God’s elect will be used to “hide a multitude of sins” via the great white throne judgment that will be administered to the “innumerable multitude” (Rev 7:9) with their “multitude of sins.”]

1Ki 17:2  And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, 
1Ki 17:3  Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. 

“Turn thee eastward” is a statement that symbolizes our starting to look to Christ whose coming into our heavens is “as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (Mat 24:27, 2Th 2:8). He comes as lightning which occurs during those Psalm 107 storms, which we see as a result of being dragged to the son (Joh 6:44).  That is how “the word of the LORD came unto him“, and unto us for whom these prophecies are written (1Co 10:11) who are hidden in Christ. It is at the brook Cherith [“cutting”] where we receive that first deadly wound before we can cross the Jordan to “hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.“

1Ki 17:4  And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. 
1Ki 17:5  So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. 
1Ki 17:6  And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook. 

God can use any means He wants to sustain us spiritually through the wilderness with bread and meat, which symbolize his word, and this provision that was being made for Elijah comes at “the brook Cherith” where that word CherithH3747 which means “cut” represents our dying daily process that makes it possible for us to be sustained in the Lord, “And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there” (1Co 15:31).

The raven is an unclean bird but can still, by God’s mercy, be used to supply our needs in the wilderness. The raven gives up the meat just as the churches of Babylon labor in the word for our sakes in this age. God’s elect are the few in this life (Mat 22:14) who are able to read, hear and keep the sayings of the prophecies which are symbolized in Elijah’s life when he ate the meat from the raven (Rev 1:3).

Notice Elijah “did according unto the word of the LORD” demonstrating an obedient spirit that was abiding where he needed to be in order to have the ravens bring “him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook” (Luk 24:49).

Luk 24:49  And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, [Gal 4:26] until ye be endued with power from on high.

God continues to abundantly supply our every need in Christ provided we are granted by His hand to continue to be apprehended by the hand of a fit man, Jesus Christ (Php 3:12, Lev 16:21), who makes it possible for us to die daily.

Php 3:12  Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. [Php 2:12-13 says the same thing]

The statement “the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook” is a witness to how God provides the spiritual meat in due season we need in order to be sustained in this life (Mat 24:45, 1Co 10:2-3).

Mat 24:45  Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?

1Co 10:2  And were all baptized unto Moses [We are baptized into Christ’s death so we can feed each other spiritual meat in due season (Rom 6:3)] in the cloud and in the sea; 
1Co 10:3  And did all eat the same spiritual meat; 
1Co 10:4  And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. 

1Ki 17:7  And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land. 
1Ki 17:8  And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, 
1Ki 17:9  Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. 

Now in our story of Elijah who represents God’s elect, we see the process of dying daily at the brook Cherith drying up, which is symbolic of losing our first love, and what we must be given to do at this point is to receive the counsel that comes from  the word of God “the word of the LORD came unto him” and what it tells us to do is “Arise, get thee to ZarephathH6886 [Zarephath = “refinery”], which belongeth to Zidon H6721 [Sidon = “hunting”], and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee” which is another way of saying “I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire [refinement process], that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see” (Rev 3:18, Heb 10:25, Jas 1:27).

We can be hunters and fishers of men [“ZidonH6721“] if God gives us an obedient spirit that leads us to be sustained by “a widow woman” who represents the church where the manifold wisdom of God is given to those who are blessed to hunger and thirst for His righteousness (Eph 3:10, Mat 5:6, Jas 1:27).

1Ki 17:10  So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. 

It is at “the gate of the city“, which represents our hearts and minds, that this refining process is going to take place in “Zarephath“. This is where Elijah, a type of God’s elect, meets a woman who represents our early stage in the body of Christ that lacks faith and is gathering wood and not gold, silver and precious stone (1Co 3:12). Elijah provokes her to love and good works and says, “Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink“, as Christ does to us through each other helping us to be doers of the word and not just hearers (Joh 4:7-10, Jas 1:22).

Joh 4:7  There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.
Joh 4:8  (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) 
Joh 4:9  Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. 
Joh 4:10  Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.

1Ki 17:11  And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. 
1Ki 17:12  And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.

Elijah is in type and shadow hungry for the whole stay of bread and water as God’s elect are a peculiar people zealous of good works (Tit 2:14), and asks the widow “I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand“. It is in her hand because that is where the healing words and works of Christ are going to come from, from our hands that have laid hold to the plough and, Lord willing, are not looking back (Luk 9:62). This widow lacks faith at this stage in her walk, unlike this woman in Matthew 15:26-28 (“Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table“) who like Elijah needed only a “morsel of bread” believing that God can multiply that bread as He does His word which is symbolized by bread (Mar 6:41). Elijah is provoking her to love and good works by these actions of asking for bread and water (Php 4:17, Heb 10:24-25).

Mat 15:27  And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.
Mat 15:28  Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

The widow pronouncing “I have not a cake” is a witness that her walk is narrow and hard, no coffee and donuts here, or cake! What she did have however is all anyone of us needs, “an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse“, which represents the little faith of Christ which is great enough to get the work done in our lives (Rev 3:8) as we each operate together as one body in the measure of faith that He gives each joint to supply in love (Luk 17:6, Rom 12:3, Eph 4:16).

Rev 3:8  I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.

Eph 4:16  From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

The widow was “gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.” Those two sticks being separate is a witness of what God is going to do for the body of Christ that is going to become one in Christ. He is our Peace and the One who makes our marriage to him possible by joining the two sticks together. The wages of sin when we’re separate from God is death (Rom 6:23), and the widow has no hope of being sustained or becoming whole again so she just expresses her reason for gathering these two sticks in this manner: “that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die” (Eph 2:14, Mar 10:8, Eze 37:15-20).

Eph 2:14  For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;

Mar 10:8  And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. 

Eze 37:15  The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying, 
Eze 37:16  Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions: 
Eze 37:17  And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand. 
Eze 37:18  And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these? 
Eze 37:19  Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand. 
Eze 37:20  And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes. 

1Ki 17:13  And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son. 
1Ki 17:14  For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth. 
1Ki 17:15  And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days. 
1Ki 17:16  And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah.

Christ comes to us like Elijah did to this widow woman telling her, as Christ tells the church, “fear not“. Fear not it is your Father’s good pleasure to give his little flock the kingdom (Luk 12:32), and our labors in Christ, which are typified by her making “a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.” This demonstrates that our labors are not in vain in the Lord who has preeminence in all thing including eating of the cake first, then we inherit that blessing [Lev 23:15, Lev 23:17] and share it with “thy sons” which symbolizes the rest of the world (Col 1:15-19).

Col 1:18  And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. 
Col 1:19  For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; 

The church is obedient to the commandments of God just as this widow is to the requests of Elijah. The result of that obedience expressed by her doing “according to the saying of Elijah” is that “she, and he, and her house, did eat many days” (Psa 92:14-15).

Psa 92:14  They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing; 
Psa 92:15  To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

When we are obedient to God’s commandments “the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah.” Israel experienced this same principle in the wilderness regarding the manna, which typifies Christ who, when we don’t know, we take for granted and misappropriate His word to our own destruction (Luk 23:34), not obeying his commandments (Mat 5:18, 1Co 4:6).

Exo 16:16  This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded, Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer for every man, according to the number of your persons; take ye every man for them which are in his tents. 

Exo 16:20  Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was wroth with them. 

Mat 5:18  For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. 

1Co 4:6  And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think of men above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another.

1Ki 17:17  And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him.

It is after these physical miracles of providing oil and meal, representing the spirit of God being given, that we see the next parable line up showing us what can be accomplished when we have the life of Christ in us (Rom 8:9). We all are the son of the “mistressH1172” of a house where there is sickness, which symbolizes our time of spiritual sickness, or blindness, in Babylon, where there is “no breath” of life within us, no stay of water or bread, no oil or meal within.

“His sickness was so sore” reminds us of how sore our trials were, the great fight of affliction we endured as we were being grafted into the body of Christ, typified by the prodigal son’s time when he was brought to his wits’ end after having “joined himself to a citizen of that country” (Heb 10:32, Luk 15:16).

Heb 10:32  But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions; 

Luk 15:15  And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 
Luk 15:16  And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him.

Afterward our trials turn from the purpose of being grafted into the body to a lifetime of being pruned and shown what great things we “must suffer for my name’s sake” as we, Lord willing, grow and mature in Christ (Act 9:16, Act 14:22).

Act 9:16  For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake.

Act 14:22  Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.

1Ki 17:18  And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son? 

The son was at death’s door, and Elijah came to give witness to the life of Christ symbolically for our sakes, by resurrecting her son to life. That soon-to-be-resurrected son represents our being born again unto God through the death of our old doctrines that are destroyed by being given the new life of Christ within. In this sense, Elijah did slay her son and brought her sins into remembrance, and then raised the child so that he could, in type and shadow, be baptized into Christ’s death (Joh 3:3, Rom 6:3).

Joh 3:3  Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

This section of the story symbolizes how God calls our sins to remembrance and then heals us as the child was healed, “to call my sin to remembrance.” Elijah is come to heal her dead son who represents the false doctrines, or demons, that have come forth from her as a type of Babylon, who was the mother of us all at one point (Rev 17:5). Her spirit is one of fear and torment as she does not see that God is bringing healing to her, and not the condemnation she supposes to be the case (Mat 25:24-26, Rev 18:10, 1Jn 4:17-18).

Mat 25:24  Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed:
Mat 25:25  And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.
Mat 25:26  His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed:

Rev 18:10  Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.

1Jn 4:17  Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. 
1Jn 4:18  There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

1Ki 17:19  And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed.

This is not the “bosom” of Abraham that typifies Christ (Luk 16:22), but rather the bosom of Babylon that is in the earth that the child is taken from (Luk 16:22) just as we are dragged out of Babylon by God and grafted into Christ (Joh 6:44). Then the prophet “carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed“, which is symbolic of our being raised in heavenly places where we are grafted into Christ (Eph 2:6) as we lay upon “his own bed” to be healed by God’s power alone, through his Word. 

1Co 6:14  And God hath both raised up the Lord, and will also raise up us by his own power.

1Pe 1:21  Who by him [Christ] do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God. 

Once we are healed, it will be our own bed and no other man’s, meaning we are commanded at that point to pick up our own bed once we are healed (Joh 5:8) by the Lord. We will spend the rest of our life knowing that it is we who must work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, intimately knowing that it is Christ who is giving us the power to pick up our own bed and accomplish this (Php 2:12-13.

1Ki 17:20  And he cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?

The answer to Elijah’s question is, “Yes, God did bring the evil (Isa 45:7)” He did so with the purpose in mind of preserving life, just as was the case with Joseph’s brothers (Gen 45:5-7). The elect’s posterity in the earth today comes about as a result of being given to see that God does create darkness and makes peace and creates evil. He does it all as the Master Potter who, in time, will save all of His creation (Rom 9:14-16).

Isa 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.

Gen 45:5  Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life. 
Gen 45:6  For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest. 
Gen 45:7  And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. 

Rom 9:14  What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid. 
Rom 9:15  For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. 
Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.

1Ki 17:21 And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child’s soul come into him again. 

This symbolic prayer of Elijah, “let this child’s soul come into him again”, is the one that we pray for each other every day when we ask God to fulfill his will in our lives and give us this day our daily bread. This is how the manchild will mature within us as we cry out for one another to God with fervent prayer that avails much and is heard when we fear God (Jas 5:16, Heb 5:7).  It is three times he stretched himself upon the child as a symbol of “the process of spiritual completion” we go through and is accomplished when we are covered by Christ (Exo 37:9, Rom 4:7).

Exo 37:9  And the cherubims spread out their wings on high, and covered with their wings over the mercy seat, with their faces one to another; even to the mercy seatward were the faces of the cherubims.  

Rom 4:7  Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.

The words “And he stretched himself“H4058 explains to us what Christ must do to us as His sons and daughters (who need healing in this life, who need a physician) who is healing us with His word that is measuring us against Christ and His words (Luk 5:31, Rev 11:1, Zec 4:9). We stretch ourselves for each other looking not just on our own things but the things of others (Php 2:4), and in so doing we are blessed to fulfill the law of Christ for one another (Gal 6:2).

Luk 5:31  And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick. 
Luk 5:32  I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. 

Rev 11:1  And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein. 

Zec 4:9  The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you. 

1Ki 17:22  And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived. 
1Ki 17:23  And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son liveth. 

We are heard by God when we fear Him and have reverence toward Him, and this is what makes it possible for our outward man to perish daily even as we put on the new man that is formed in His righteousness (Joh 14:13, 1Jn 5:14, Heb 5:7, Eph 4:22-24). Elijah is a type of the elect who is heard by the Lord, and the body of  Christ’s prayers are answered according to God’s will which is to put off the flesh and to have us conformed to the image of Christ in this age (2Co 4:16-17, Lam 3:22, Luk 22:42).

Eph 4:22  That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; 
Eph 4:23  And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; 
Eph 4:24  And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

2Co 4:16  For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. 
2Co 4:17  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; 

Lam 3:22  It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 

One day the Father will introduce the bride of Christ to the world, symbolized by this sentence: “And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son liveth.” This witness of the son’s healing reminds us also of Christ’s own resurrected body that had to be seen by the doubting heart of Thomas in order to be convinced that this was the son of God (Joh 20:27-29).

Joh 20:27  Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. 
Joh 20:28  And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. 
Joh 20:29  Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

1Ki 17:24  And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth.

Her statement, “Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth“, demonstrated her lack of faith having had to see these things to believe (Joh 20:29), just like Nicodemus coming to Christ by night who uttered very similar words out of his mouth which were connected with the works of Christ and not the faith of Christ which is the precious gift God has given to so few in this life (Joh 3:1-3).

Joh 20:29  Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. 

Joh 3:1  There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 
Joh 3:2  The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. 
Joh 3:3  Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

It is with that faith of Christ that we come to believe the personal application of the title of this study that applies to the body of Christ today that has been “born again” and can see the kingdom of God that is God’s good pleasure to give to us in an earnest relationship that is leading up to the first resurrection: “And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah“.

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